Dominic Monaghan was a guest on 'The Ellen Degeneres Show' Tuesday, February 13th. He was there to promote the second half of the new season of 'LOST' on ABC. They also spoke a bit about English football and Valentine's Day. Take a look at the clip here! [More]

A KML file can, for example, add data points to a Google Earth map of New Zealand that show where various scenes from the three 'Lord of the Rings' films were shot.

Google Earth has moved into a tighter orbit around Google search. Google Earth users can now search for specific geographic data layers, otherwise known as Keyhole Markup Language (KML) files, to create map overlays.

In a post on the Google Maps API Blog, Google Earth product manager Chikai Ohazama offers an example: Navigate to New Zealand in Google Earth and enter "Lord of the Rings" in the Google Earth search box. The result is a KML file that, when selected, adds data points to the map of New Zealand that show where various scenes from the three Lord of the Rings films were shot. [More] [Google Earth]

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - New Zealand is home to a thriving film industry, one that has produced movies like the internationally acclaimed "Whale Rider." It was an early adopter of incentives that attract outside productions. It's also the home of Peter Jackson's effects companies, Weta Digital and Weta Workshop, and their impact on New Zealand's film industry cannot be underestimated.

Weta has grown from a boutique effects house serving only Jackson's projects to one that services production the world over. And that has provided New Zealand with an edge that is as sharp as Aragorn's sword. [More]

Sir Ian McKellen branded British Academy Awards "downmarket and low key". The “Lord Of The Rings” star expressed his regret the awards failed to attract neither “Little Miss Sunshine” actor Alan Arkin, who was named Best Supporting Actor, or “Dreamgirls” Jennifer Hudson, named Best Supporting Actress, both of whom failed to collect their awards at the event in London, as FemaleFirst notes. [More]

To make the top 12 is an honor. To win the competition is a dream. 12 contestants. A panel of expert judges. This is MIDDLE EARTH IDOL. Brought to you by M.A.R.S. Productions, this parody of American Idol and Lord of the Rings features Kiran Shah, Daniel Reeve, Michael Regina, Grant Wilson and Dean Haglund judging Frodo, Galdalf, Gollum and more! Will the Shire bring us the next Middle Earth Idol? Or will the future king of Gondor reign above all others? The first episode will premiere next month at ORC in Burbank, as well as a compilation of the remaining episodes. [More]

Director James Cameron, hard at work on his sci-fi extravaganza Avatar, is the latest person to comment on the increasingly nasty legal battle between Peter Jackson and New Line over profits from The Lord of The Rings. Jackson, for those who haven't been keeping up with current events, accused New Line of deceptive accounting practices and demanded that the company submit to an audit. The resulting lawsuit managed to nix any chance of Jackson directing The Hobbit for New Line under their current management and time is running out for the film to be put into production before the rights switch hands again. Already there are rumors that Sam Raimi will be taking over the project before the contract expires in 2009. Premiere Magazine spoke with Cameron about the controversy because Cameron is planning to use Jackson's Wellington studio to shoot parts of Avatar. [More]

From movieweb.com: From the imaginations of AnnaSophia Robb and Josh Hutcherson, comes the new film, Bridge to Terabithia. But, those creatures didn't just come out of no where - the good people at WETA worked tirelessly to get them looking spectacular. The film is an adaptation of the children's novel by Katherine Patterson; it's directed by Gabor Csupo, of Nickelodeon cartoon fame.

I had the chance to speak with Matt Aitken, one of the animators at the New Zealand workshop about creating the world of Terabithia. He told me making this land was a little different than working on King Kong and The Lord Of The Rings. [More]

Ian Collier also sends this in: The Tolkien Society Los Angeles Chapter will hold its annual JRR Tolkien Reading Day event on Saturday, March 24, from 3:00 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. and on Sunday, March 25, from 1:30p.m. until 4:30 p.m. The Saturday event will take place in the Arcadia Public Library, located at 20 West Duarte Road in Arcadia. The Sunday event will be held at a separate location, the Mid-Valley Regional Branch Library, located at 16244 Nordoff Street in North Hills. Costumed volunteers will be reading selected works from JRR Tolkien, most notably from his famed "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Children can also participate in coloring and sing-a-longs. For more information on this event, you can email Jacki Stevens here.

Ian Collier from the Tolkien Society writes: The Wellinghall Smial (greater Toronto, Ontario area) will be celebrating Tolkien Reading Day on March 24th, 2007. We will be at The Pickle Barrel at Yorkdale Mall (Toronto) at 1.00 pm for lunch, readings, discussion and laughs. All Ents and Entings are welcome. For more discussion about the event check out our forum at wellinghallsmial.blogspot.com.

New Line's option to make The Hobbit expires in 2009; maybe they don't think Peter Jackson can get the movie made in time. The company is also already turning its attention to another mega-budgeted fantasy franchise, the His Dark Materials trilogy. But the studio's motivations became more clear in January, when New Line co-CEO Robert Shaye couldn't refrain from a retort.

"I do not want to make a movie with somebody who is suing me. It will never happen during my watch," he said, and then referred to Jackson as "misinformed" and "myopic." [More]

The Non-Disclosure Agreement for the Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO) beta test has been lifted, and with the game set for release soon it may be useful to you to peruse some hands-on previews of the title. Hexus.net offers A Day in the Life of a Hobbit, and Tobold's MMORPG blog has similar hobbit-related impressions. Tobold also has a comparison between LORTRO and World of Warcraft for those who might be thinking about making the jump. More hands-on info is available from Warcry, Kill Ten Rats, and Gamers With Jobs. [More]

Dominic Monaghan is/was (depending where you live) a guest on 'The Ellen Degeneres Show' today to promote 'Lost'. The second half of the latest season picked up with a bang last week, and promises to continue with more! 'Lost' is on ABC at 10PM. Watch this space for the clip from 'Ellen'.

A ton of interesting new films are out on DVD this week. Take an early look on our 'DVD Tuesday' feature...every Monday! Some very cool TV on DVD like 'All in the Family - S6', 'Beauty and the Beast - S1', 'Conan O'Brien 10th Anniv Special' & the entire series of the great American sitcom 'Men Behaving Badly'. The big releases of the week are 'The Departed' & 'School for Scoundrels'. Personally I'm interested in 'Hercules and the Captive Women/Hercules, Prisoner of Evil' & 'Marie Antoinette'! Check out the whole list here! [More]

In the 33 years since Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien passed away, his youngest son Christopher has relentlessly plugged away at deciphering and organizing his father's voluminous notes into further tales of Middle Earth. On April 17, the release of The Children of Húrin — begun by the elder Tolkien in 1918 — will bring those tales to a close. [More]

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - A crater lake on a New Zealand volcano used as a backdrop in the "Lord of the Rings" films is on the verge of collapsing and could send a torrent of muddy water down the mountain in coming weeks. Melting snow on Mount Ruapehu has filled the lake to within 1.5 metres (5 feet) of its lip, according to the New Zealand Herald newspaper. The 2,797-meter (9,177-feet) volcano is the highest mountain in the North Island and home to two commercial ski fields. Scientists say a lahar, or mudflow composed of volcanic material and water, is inevitable as warm summer weather causes the snow to melt and fill the lake. [More]

Sideshow Collectibles has started pre-selling 'The Crack of Doom - Frodo and Gollum' Diorama. For a complete gallery of imagery and product details, follow the 'pre-order' link to the Sideshow website. And don't forget to check out the Legolas 12-inch figure, an item that is getting rave reviews all over the web! [Pre-Order] [View the Video] [Legolas 12-inch Figure]

Robbi writes: The Florida Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Markus Huber, will perform The Lord of the Rings Symphony on February 21 and 22, 2007 at the Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg, Florida. This will be the first performance of the Symphony in Florida! The symphony, composed by Howard Shore, is two hours of music taken from the trilogy and uses the illustrations of Alan Lee and John Howe to accompany the musical journey through Middle Earth. For tickets and more information, please visit their Web site at: floridaorchestra.org

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - The director of a revamped "The Lord of the Rings" musical went to J.R.R. Tolkien's grave to seek the author's posthumous blessing for staging the cult classic -- and he apologised in case the writer disapproved. "That was a magical moment," director Matthew Warchus told reporters on Thursday when presenting to the press the 50-strong cast of what is being billed as the most expensive musical ever staged in London. "I visited his grave in Oxford to apologise and get his seal of approval. I apologised in case he didn't like the idea of a stage show," the director said. [More]

Here is the artwork Alan Lee has created for the gold foil stamp to appear on the front board and slipcase of the deluxe edition of THE CHILDREN OF HÚRIN. The final jacket art will be posted on Amazon tomorrow morning. THE CHILDREN OF HÚRIN will be released worldwide on April 17! [Enlarge Image]

Lorien "Ramen" Carney, Community Relations Specialist for The Lord of the Rings Online writes: Journey to the hidden valley of Rivendell and discover the Last Homely House, dwelling of Elrond. We’ve included both concept art and a screenshot for your viewing pleasure. [More]